Updates from Frederick Smith, former Detroiter living in Los Angeles, and author of Play It Forward (January 2015), Right Side of the Wrong Bed (December 2007), and Down For Whatever (July 2005).
www.FrederickLSmith.com

Thursday, July 28, 2005

Homegirls Cafe. Boyle Heights. Josefina Lopez.

Discovered this new spot in L.A., the Boyle Heights area: Homegirls Cafe.It's a true "help the community" kinda restaurant. The staff and servers are all being given a new lease on life from gang life (they are interviewed and selected by a social services agency specializing in gang intervention work). And the menu, though it has several traditional Mexican dishes, is light and healthy... and no red meat is served; traditional refried beans, rice, etc... are rarely served. Look for tons of vegetables. So it's helping people live healthier lives with healthy food choices.Read the L.A. Times Review on Homegirls Cafe.This is part of the overall development of the Boyle Heights area, where Josefina Lopez, writer/producer of the film Real Women Have Curves, is investing a lot of time, money, and energy in making sure people see this area of L.A., which has been long neglected by developers, as an important cultural center of the city. Her space, Casa 0101, is developing many new writers, actors, and performers who will shape the face of art and culture in L.A. and around the country.Go Homegirls. Go Josefina.fs